Ken Brown received a certificate of independence Oct. 31 from staff members at Pleasant Meadow Manor. Brown, who was once told he wouldn't walk again, is now walking with a walker.
Resident’s mobility keeps getting better
Thursday November 1, 2007 -- Deron Hamel
At the beginning of September, the OMNIway told you about Pleasant Meadow Manor resident Ken Brown, whose hard work and determination allowed him to prove his doctors wrong after they told him he’d never walk again.

Brown, 68, suffered a fall in April, leaving him in a wheelchair. Upon moving into the Norwood long-term care home, Brown began receiving treatment from physiotherapy assistant Barb Ross.

After 4 ½ months of physiotherapy, Brown began dividing his time between walker and wheelchair.

Brown has taken his recovery up another notch, thanks to all his hard work. Today, he uses his walker full time.

And since he no longer requires a wheelchair, he had to keep a promise to Ross.

“I told him that when he got better that I was to have the first dance with him,” she recalls.

On Oct. 16, while attending a performance by the Otonabee Fiddlers, Ross cashed in on that promise.

“I said to him, ‘It’s time to dance,” and he said, ‘Can I?’ I said, ‘Yes, you can,’ and we got up and danced,” she says.

So, was Ross surprised that Brown managed to dance with her without any assistance?

“I wasn’t surprised, but he was,” she says.

And Brown’s recovery hasn’t stopped there.

Ross says not only has he made strides in his physical recovery, Ross notes Brown’s outlook on life has made big-time improvement, and he’s a happier person.

“He used to lie down every afternoon and nap, (but) since then he doesn’t lie down,” she says “He goes to the afternoon programs, because he says he doesn’t want to sleep his life away.”

While Brown is still using a wheelchair off and on, he walks with the help of staff members to his meals, which Ross says he had never done before.

The biggest reason for Brown’s improvement, says Ross, has been the constant reassuring and encouragement he receives from staff members. The fact he’s now seeing the results of his efforts has also had a positive effect on Brown, Ross adds.

So, what does Brown think about his progress?

“When I came here, I didn’t want to get out of bed, but now I want to walk all the time,” he says. “I can do most things by myself now, and this makes me feel great.”